News

New grants reward leading innovators & researchers in Fremantle

Published on Thu 1 September 2022 at 12:42 pm

The Australian Research Council (ARC) has announced more than $29 million for 61 grants for Linkage Projects across Australia over the next five years, with Fremantle to receive $1.5 million to fund projects that will expand our cultural understanding.

Josh Wilson MP, Member for Fremantle, said today that the $700,411 grant for the University of Notre Dame will fund environmental humanities research that will investigate, describe, and compare the transfer of First Nation’s knowledge in both the Kimberley and a southwest region of Western Australia to understand how cultural values, environmental information, and practices persist despite hardship, with the aim of improving Aboriginal wellbeing and regional biodiversity.

An $800,000 grant to UWA will allow maritime archaeologists at the Western Australian Museum to contribute to an international collaboration aimed at placing Western Australia’s Dutch East India Company shipwrecks in an international context, enriching the knowledge-value of relevant collections, providing new and improved narratives for use in museums and historic sites, and revitalising content that supports the important category of historical/heritage tourism.

“This is great news for Fremantle/Walyalup, a place and a community that has always valued and benefited from our rich heritage and history,” Mr Wilson said.

“Linkage Projects promote national and international research partnerships between researchers and business, industry, community organisations, and other publicly funded research agencies.

“It is fantastic that local researchers and innovators have been recognised and rewarded with these grants.”

“The ground-breaking work they are doing locally has the potential to deliver both commercial and cultural applications that benefit people and communities locally, nationally, and internationally.

“I am glad to be part of a Labor government that is supporting the potent combination of innovation and heritage work in Fremantle,” Mr Wilson said.

The projects across Australia will also receive an additional $59 million in cash and in-kind support from more than 200 partner organisations.

For information about the ARC’s Linkage Projects scheme, visit the Linkage Projects page on the Australian Research Council (ARC) website www.arc.gov.au